Constitution review process not fair to PWDs

Alex Korsi Akpo, Ho Municipal President of Ghana Federation of the Disabled, has observed that the constitutional process appeared to have treated the interests of People with Disabilities (PWDs) flippantly.

He was speaking to Ghana News Agency, on the sidelines of the Volta Regional Stakeholders briefing on the constitutional review implementation process.

Mr Akpo said right issues relating to PWDs should streak the constitution in the same measure as the review process deemed it for gender interests.

He told the briefing that the Review Commission’s recommendation “that a retrofitted version of the Draft PWDs Regulations should be completed by the Disability Council and the Ministry in charge of Social Welfare for passage by Parliament” was disheveling.

The regional stakeholder meetings are under the auspices of the Constitutional Review Implementation Committee (CRIC) with support from the UNDP, EU, DANIDA and National Commission on Civic Education (NCCE).

Augustine Mensah Bosrotsi, Regional Director of NCCE, said it is important for the review to carry along large numbers of the citizens through all stages of the review.

Professor Emmanuel Victor Oware Dankwa, Chairman of CRIC, said a lot of work needs to be done to meet the demand that 40 per cent of the electorate must turn-out to vote while 75 per cent must be in favour of the amendment of the entrenched bills.

Regarding a suggestion by Harrison Belley, Executive Director of the Ho-based Institute of Democracy Education that the referendum be decoupled from the Local Government Elections because of the proverbial low turnout associated with it, Prof Dankwa said whichever way, there is the need to hype the referendum to get the required turnout.

He said it was also important that cost is considered in determining these matters.

Dr Gheysika Agambila, CRIC Member, took the review meeting through the un-entrenched provisions, hinting that the National Media Commission (NMC) might probably have more capacity than it currently had.